SheBrand Superstar: Mary van de Wiel

Every week we’ll be featuring a smart, savvy female entrepreneur we think is just great. These are women who are out there in the trenches each and every day, making things happen and affecting other people’s lives for the better. So pull up a comfy chair, grab a cup of coffee and meet this week’s SheBrand Superstar. We can all learn a golden nugget or two from each other.

Name: VAN / Mary van de Wiel

Occupation:

• Founder & Brand Anthropologist, Zing Your Brand & Co.
• Weekly Host, NY Brand Lab Radio
• Leader, NY Brand Lab Workshops, Speaker and Producer of Brand Reinvention Summit

Website: https://www.ZingYourBrand.com

Twitter: @maryvandewiel

1. What are three words that best describe your personal brand?

Provocative. Idiosyncratic. Fun (as much as you can tolerate).

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less.

I interpret invisible clues for a living. I get to raise the pulse of brand in a nanosecond, and (in full disclosure) I can read any brand’s mind and energy levels.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences?

1) Foot Massage

2) Vodka Martini

3) Breakfast in Bed

4. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Arrogance, the blatant in-your-face kind of arrogance.

5. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be and why?

I’d prefer to put elbows on the dinner table with a triad:  Anthropologist Margaret Mead, Mind Reader Sigmund Freud and Visual Storyteller Frida Kahlo. I love probing deep, understanding what makes people tick and how to tell visual stories. (I’d call that a potent cocktail.)

6. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

Why? Because if you can recognize yourself (your own creative genius), then others can. (Sounds simple, right?)

7. What is your #1 marketing tip for fellow female entrepreneurs?

Show up. (If you do, then you have the chance of staking out your own territory, soaring big time, and landing a spot on the 21C new brand landscape. If not, you’re toast.)